Washington (CNN) - Forced government spending cuts, known in Washington jargon as sequestration, took effect a month ago amid doomsday predictions of freed criminals, weakened borders and a crippled military.

President Barack Obama and other federal officials warned that the harshest impacts would hit in April, with worker furloughs and program cuts rippling through the economy to stunt growth during a sluggish recovery.

Washington (CNN) - A top political adviser to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is pushing back against a series of new online ads in McConnell's home state of Kentucky that target the top Senate Republican for helping to negotiate a deal that prevented the U.S. from falling off the fiscal cliff.

The ads, by the conservative advocacy group ForAmerica, ask "Mitch McConnell: Whose side are you on?" and show an image of a sullen McConnell sandwiched between pictures of a grinning Vice President Joe Biden and a smirking President Barack Obama.FULL POST

(CNN) - For all the last-minute wrangling to avoid the potentially damaging consequences of the fiscal cliff, Americans aren't impressed with the solution, according to a new poll.

The Pew Research Center poll out Monday showed 38% of adults approved of the scaled-back deal congressional leaders passed as the calendar rolled into 2013 - after the country, technically, had gone over the cliff.FULL POST

(CNN) – While Republicans this week have already begun to lace up their fighting gloves for the upcoming battles over debt and spending, President Barack Obama used his weekly address Saturday to draw his own lines.

"One thing I will not compromise over is whether or not Congress should pay the tab for a bill they've already racked up. If Congress refuses to give the United States the ability to pay its bills on time, the consequences for the entire global economy could be catastrophic," Obama said.FULL POST

(CNN) - A new poll shows neither Republicans nor Democrats in Congress weathered the fiscal cliff showdown well, and Americans' views on the agreement are sharply divided along political lines.

The Gallup survey found only 34% of Americans approved of congressional Democrats' handling of the cliff negotiations. Congressional Republicans scored even lower, with 25% approval. Two thirds - 67% - disapproved of Capitol Hill Republicans' handling of the negotiations and 55% disapproved of how Democrats handled the talks.FULL POST

New York (CNNMoney) - More than three in four Americans will pay higher taxes for 2013, thanks to the fiscal cliff deal passed in Congress on New Year's Day.

Over 77% of filers will pay more, according to the Tax Policy Center. The average increase is expected to be $1,257, but that figure belies the wide disparity in impact. Those making less than $10,000 a year will pay $68 more in federal taxes, on average, while those making between $50,000 and $75,000 will see an $822 jump. Wealthy filers with incomes of $1 million or more will see a $170,341 spike, on average.

Editor's note: Gloria Borger is CNN's chief political analyst, appearing regularly on shows such as "AC360˚," "The Situation Room" and "State of the Union."

Washington (CNN) - So I remember thinking, when Congress and President Obama concocted the supercommittee on the deficit - and the fiscal cliff as a last resort if all else failed - that it was a generally boneheaded, albeit necessary, idea.

Conceived in desperation as a way to come up with a deal to raise the debt ceiling (and pay our bills) in the summer of 2011, it seemed like the only way out: a way to agree to do what needed to be done in the short term and to force action in the long term on the bigger picture.

Honolulu, Hawaii (CNN) - If you are a president who desperately wants to salvage your Hawaiian vacation, why stick around Washington to sign a bill when an automatic pen can do it for you?

That’s what happened Wednesday when the long-haggled over bill to avert the fiscal cliff was delivered to the White House for the president’s signature. With Obama 5,000 miles away in Hawaii, aides decided to prepare the president with an electronic version of the document for his review rather than commission a special flight to currier over the document.